Montana State University play-by-play announcer Mark Martello has gone public with his story after he was terminated for making a joke ragging on Antifa while covering the MSU v. Portland women’s basketball game. He jokingly compared the Portland team to their violent, leftist, arsonist rioting counterparts in the streets in that they similarly seem to get away with everything. And he did NOT apologize for it.
After a referee failed to call a penalty on Portland, Martello, not missing a beat quipped,
“Evidently, Cats are up 19. Portland can get away with whatever they’re going to get away with. Portland’s like Antifa after a riot. They might go to jail, but they get out right away. They can get away with it. Uh-oh I shouldn’t say stuff like that, I’m sorry”
He even acknowledge, tongue-in-cheek that the crack was a tad risqué in some circles but it’s doubtful he figured the response would be so harsh or immediate.
That, as they say, is when all hell broke loose. Reportedly Mark had also made a reference to Portland being similar to the South-side of Chicago previously in the game, another politically charged jibe that seems to have fallen a bit flat with more sensitive members of his audience.
He allegedly said, “Ogele, from Saint Ignatius College in Chicago, which is South Side, you’ve heard of. Portland not much different, I don’t think, these days.”
Portland sports journalist Joe Terry who tweeted about the incident later reported “Getting word that the MSU announcer for the game was let go,”
Martello Doesn’t Apologize – It’s The Perfect Response
Seriously, Joe Rogan could take a lesson from this titan among men. Martello immediately took note of the severe double standard that his firing represented, and didn’t apologize in the least for having a sense of humor.
He told 406mtsports, according to The Post Millennial,
“This is part of the world we live in, a big reason why I hate Social Media. Dumb thing to say maybe, but firing me represents MONTANA values? I think not. MSU promotes Portland values, in Montana. Kneeling is fine, political warm-ups are no problem, but some radio yahoo making wise cracks is a capital offense. Everything I said was true. I guess the truth hurts.”
The Portland State athletic department issued a statement through a spokesperson to 406mtsports.com, be careful while reading it, the stench of cowardice takes a while to wash off.
“That type of commentary has no place in the description of a college basketball game,” the statement reads. “The portrayal of Portland State was both inaccurate and inappropriate. We appreciate that Montana State acknowledges that as well.”
Our esteemed colleagues over at PM also caught up with Martello who told them,
“As a taxpaying citizen of Montana, I am deeply offended that my tax money goes to institutions that defend terrorism. As a sportscaster, I say lighten up, it was a joke”
Could we potentially get a GiveSendGo going for this guy? At a minimum, he deserves a really nice wheelbarrow with which to carry around his… chutzpah. The dude is NOW A LEGEND.
